Archive for category Denver Attorney
Insurance Settlement Negotiation
Posted by denverheat in Denver Attorney, Denver personal injury lawyer, denver accident lawyer, personal injury, personal injury attorney on June 16th, 2010
The process of negotiating for a settlement- whether it be for an injury, car crash or malpractice – is essentially the same. Motorcycle accidents often cause horrible personal injury cases, but they follow the same pattern. Once you submit a demand letter the next step is negotiation.
Before the negotiation begins, you must submit a demand letter tot he insurance companies laying out your claim with supporting evidence. If you are lucky then the next step is just a few calls with your insurance company and your personal injury lawyer. These insurance companies negotiate like this all the time so it is no sweat for them. Treat it like a business deal as emotionless as possible to stay on your senses.
In the call, you and the adjuster will argue by going over the strong and weak points of each side’s proposal. The adjuster’s job is to low-ball you with a settlement lower than the one in your demand letter. Your job is to counter with an offer in between the demand price and the adjuster’s offer. If you get a reservation of rights letter, it does not necessarily mean you have to run off to the best Denver injury attorney you can find. This is just a letter that protects the insurance company by saying that entering into negotiations does not necessarily mean that they will pay or are liable.
Your best protection from a insurance adjuster is preparation. You want to go into the negotiations with a figure in mind of the minimum you will accept. You do not tell the adjuster this number, but you will use it to help determine what you do in the negotiations. If they start off with a number already near your minimum that is good news and you can try to adjust that number to get more. If they point out some holes in your case that might make it hard to argue in court, you and your Denver accident attorney may have to revise downward.
Nerves of steel are not required, but self control is. Do not just jump at the first offer because it is probably just a ploy to see how little it will take to placate you. If you were involved in a serious Denver personal injury case, you need to stay strong in negotiations, because once the settlement is over the case can never be re-opened. You want to stay emotionless, but emphasize emotional points that would be likely to get a jury crying to open the defendant’s pocketbook.
If the adjuster gives you a low but not unreasonable offer- go forward with negotiations. If the offer is completely unreasonable they are probably just testing you so ask why it is so low and go over every point they give on why. Once you have reached a agreeable number, put that into writing with a letter to the insurance company stating the amount, what that amount covers and when you expect payment.
denver injury lawyer
Religion and Child Custody
Posted by denverheat in Denver Attorney, denver divorce attorney, denver family law on June 15th, 2010
When religion gets involved in already messy child custody and divorce proceedings, things can really get ugly. Parents may not agree on whose religion the children will be part of. This argument has been exploding into courtrooms because of the increased divorce rates. Because of the complexity and the fact that the federal government does not want to get involved in religion, the local courts often have contradictory rules.
The main problem in cases like these is conflicts between the rights of parents and the interests of children. The courts need to try and not violate the first amendment freedoms to religion without endangering children.
Case law is fragmented, but courts have ruled that one or both parent’s religious activities were not in the best interest of a child. In some cases, the child’s own viewpoint is considered by the court. In one case, a appellate court sent a case back down to the lower court so they could gather evidence on a child’s wishes. Courts will often rule in this way for children over 12 for both religious conflicts and general custody and visitation rights. However, the supreme court has not yet ruled on this issue, so often the law varies from state to state. Some places that have “cult” religions are particularly troubled by this problem. In one example, Denver family law attorneys argued that child custody and religion is something that should never come up in Denver divorce courts. Most states use one of three standards to decide on child custody standards.
One is called the actual substantial harm test, where courts will only curtail first amendment rights if the practice causes harm to the child. States like these also use this standard to restrict other parenting rights. An injury attorney will have a hard time working around this clear statute. Another standard is called the risk of harm standard, and applies earlier – if the religion will likely harm the child in the future. The final type is called no harm required, and is the hardest for Denver child custody arguments because the custodial parent is considered to have free reign over the child regardless of the other parent. The other parent has to then prove that the religion is causing harm to the child. In these states, non-custodial parents are expected to defer to the custodial parent in all matters religious.
Some interesting rulings on child custody include a Washington state case where the court ruled that simply being exposed to two different religions cannot be considered harmful. A Ohio case against Jehovah’s Witnesses ruled that going against community norms and imposing social restrictions is not harmful. However, another case ruled that threats or physical actions to force children to do a particular religion are not lawful.
Defenses in Personal Injury Law
Posted by denverheat in Denver Attorney, Denver personal injury lawyer, criminal defense attorney denver, denver accident lawyer, denver law firm, personal injury, personal injury attorney on June 1st, 2010
Personal injury is an area of law with potentially huge sums awarded. A permanently debilitating injury will change a person’s life forever, and that means a liable party must pay for those changes. Whether you have been injured and need to know the possible defenses to your case, or you are building a defense yourself, here are some common things the defense will bring up.
Personal injury defenses usually focus on the plaintiff’s role in the injury, and their inaction afterward.
Who is Liable in a Car Accident?
The first, and most common defense based on the plaintiff’s actions before the action is that the plaintiff was the one responsible. Whether you choose to settle the case before it goes to court, or you try and go to court with a Denver personal injury attorney, the compensation awarded is likely to be effected if the plaintiff is proven to have any fault in the incident. In some cases where the activity involved was obviously dangerous, a court may rule you assumed the risk and therefore have no claim. Some examples where an injury would be considered an assumed risk are auto racing and skydiving. Contact sports are also usually exempt, as long as the injury occurred during what would have been considered a normal phase of the game. A light pole falling on a player is therefore not an assumed risk, and the stadium owner would be liable.
Your state may follow comparative negligence or contributory negligence law. In comparative negligence, the court uses a formula to determine the percentage of fault in the accident. So if the plaintiff was found to be 40% at fault, they will only recover 60% of the damages caused, or 100-40%. So if you were involved in a motorcycle accident on 1-25 in Denver and the total damage suffered was found to be $30,000, you would end up with only $18,000. If you believe you were partially at fault, and the amount of money at stake is large, it is imperative that you contact a Denver accident lawyer to help you argue your side. Most states use this system, but they may use pure comparative negligence, which allows the the plaintiff to recover damages even if they were 99% at fault, while the modified system caps the compensation at 50% at fault. In other words, in the modified comparative negligence system, plaintiffs must be less at fault than defendants to receive an award.
Luckily for plaintiffs, Colorado is not a contributory negligence state. In contributory negligence states, if the injured party is at all at fault, they cannot recover any damages. Since Colorado does not follow contributory law, your Denver injury lawyer will still have a chance to recover some damages even if you were partially at fault.
There are a few other ways to get out of personal injury lawsuits because of plaintiff actions afterwards that are not actually defenses. Waiting beyond the statue of limitations makes lawsuits invalid. Also not clearly linking each claim of cause and effect from the defendant’s action (or inaction) to your injury will make the argument groundless. In other words, you must prove the defendant had a duty to repair a bridge, and their failure to repair the bridge caused it to collapse, injuring your hand. Just saying they owned the bridge and your hand got injured during the collapse does not go far enough. If the plaintiff did not do a good job repairing damages, the defendant may not have to pay for the consequences of inaction.
Personal Injury Attorneys Are Worth the Money
Posted by hantge11 in Denver Attorney, denver injury attorney, denver injury lawyer, personal injury on May 5th, 2010
If you have been injured in an accident which you believe you are not at fault, there is only one thing you should do; contact a Denver injury lawyer as soon as possible. The thing is insurance companies prefer to actually settle an injury claim as quick as possible. If you are not at fault in your accident, the at-fault person’s insurer will probably call you right away and try and settle the claim. You need to make sure you are careful with what you say to them and any offers you agree on. This is where you will want to have called an injury lawyer to handle the situation.
The complex language of insurance policies and the hardball tactics used by some claims adjusters can leave you feeling that you are not getting all to which you are entitled. They will make it sound like you do not have a case and make you feel like you will receive nothing and then come in with a low settlement. This is where you will want your attorney to handle the negotiations and if the injury or accident was bad enough, they will help bring the case to court.
When to Hire A Lawyer:
- If someone is seriously injured
- If the other person involved does not have insurance
- If the insurance company or claims adjuster is being push or difficult
The greatest thing about most Denver injury lawyers is the fact that they work on a contingency basis, meaning if they help you win that is when you owe them money. Most offer free consultations and will walk you through the process of how they handle cases like yours. This also gives you a great idea if you like the attorney or not.
Important Divorce Forms
Posted by hawkeye11 in Denver Attorney, IRS forms, denver divorce attorney, denver divorce lawyer on March 22nd, 2010
Unfortunately, a divorce is happening more and more these days. When a divorce occurs a family is forced to divide their assets and time with their children. When a family divides their assets, this means all of their finances, property and any other mutual investments. Even in the simplest of cases, when finances are involved this means federal tax obligations must be taken care of. This is why it is important to get a Denver divorce Attorney who understands the tax consequences of different situations of a divorce can bring on. It does not matter how good of a negotiator your attorney is if they do not understand the consequences you will be faced with in taxes.
There are 3 documents you will want to make sure you have been aware of by your attorney. The first form being the IRS 2120 Form which is used if there are multiple people claiming a child a dependent. This form is to help with tax exemption in the event if your spouse also claims the dependant. The second form is the IRS 8857 Form which gives relief to a spouse from their join tax return if their spouse was audited and penalized. It is important to find a Denver divorce attorney that completely understands the innocent spouse relief rules to correctly educate their client through negotiation of the divorce. The last form is the IRS 8379 Injured Spouse claim and Allocation Form. This form is important to the couple that also filed out a joint tax return prior to the divorce. When the prior joint return is filed and the refund is used to pay the other spouse for child support, that individual may be considered the “injured Spouse”. They may fill out the 8379 Form to claim their portion of the tax return.
If you hire an attorney who does not understand how a divorce can affect individual’s taxes, you could miss out on a lot of money. Make sure to hire a Denver divorce attorney who has experience in divorce cases and tax benefits.
What to Bring to Meeting w/ Divorce Attorney
Posted by hawkeye11 in Denver Attorney, denver divorce attorney, denver divorce lawyer, denver law firm on January 17th, 2010
The purpose of an initial consultation is for you to share details about yourself and your marriage with the attorney, who can then give you a better idea about what to expect.
What to bring to the meeting with your Attorney:
Being prepared for a meeting with a Denver divorce attorney will allow you to focus on the questions that matter. In order to make the most of your time, you can bring relevant documents about your family and personal finances:
Finances
- Copies of personal and joint bank statements for every checking and savings account
- Tax returns
- Copies of credit card statements
- Information about investments such as stocks and bonds
- Information about personal debts
- Estimated living expenses
Property
- Copies of real estate deeds
- Mortgage statements
- Car titles, registration information, and loan statements
Personal
- Names, ages, and addresses of children
- Evidence to substantiate a claim (adultery, abuse, etc.)
- Items such as photographs to personalize your story
While this may seem like an overwhelming amount of information to gather and provide, the fact is that the more that you tell the lawyer, the more that the Denver lawyer can tell you.
Providing an overview of your finances, property, and family life can help a Denver lawyer
judge whether the likelihood of possible disputes regarding complicated issues such as child custody or the division of property.
Asking the right questions
In addition to telling a divorce attorney about yourself, the initial consultation also allows you to learn more about the attorney. While the attorney may volunteer information, you may want to arrive at the office prepared to ask some questions. Your specific questions will naturally depend on your situation, but you may want to arrive at the office with certain points in mind:
- How much experience does the Denver law firm have handling divorces in your state?
- What percentage of the lawyer’s practice is devoted to divorces and family law issues?
- How does the lawyer charge fees?
These are some questions to consider. Finally, you may want to ask yourself if you feel comfortable with the lawyer and confident that your best interests will be represented.
Selecting Your Criminal Defense Lawyer in Denver
Posted by hawkeye11 in Criminal Attorney, Denver Attorney, Firing your Attorney, criminal defense attorney denver on December 11th, 2009
When it comes to courtrooms, there is nothing more enthralling than the battle between the prosecutor and the Denver criminal defense lawyer. In fact, this duel has become so interesting that plots of books, television shows, and even video games have revolved around these people. Now the characters Atticus Finch (from To Kill a Mocking Bird), Perry Mason (from the novels and TV show by Erle Stanly Gardner) and Phoenix Wright (from the video game) have entered into the people’s consciousness.
Unfortunately, sometimes reality can catch up with people, and the criminal defense lawyers are not just left into the pages of fiction but have to become players in the real world. Once you get accused of a crime, especially one that you truly did not commit, you would want to immediately search for the best defense lawyer in Denver who cannot only handle your case but has a good chance of winning it too. These Denver lawyers would be able to defend you and represent you well in court.
Of course, finding a good Denver criminal attorney is not as easy as it seems on TV, books, or video games. There are many qualifications that you must study in order to find the best lawyer that could fit your needs. Here are some ways for you to be able to select a good lawyer.
The first thing that you should do before selecting a criminal defense lawyer would be to check the background of the Denver attorney. You could look if he really passed the bar for the state where he is practicing his law, his success rate in the cases that he or she has handled, and perhaps even check if he had already handled cases that are very similar to the one that you are facing now. The best step would be to ask appropriate questions. You could begin to ask how long he or she has been practicing law, the cases that he or she has handled, and perhaps even how much the attorney charges for the cases that they take.
Another thing to look at would be the specialty of the Denver lawyer. Some lawyers are able to specialize in a certain crime or case such as traffic or DUI, petty crimes, or even murder. It would always be a good idea to select a Denver lawyer that has been highly successful in the area of law that your case is in.
An underrated aspect when picking a criminal defense lawyer is to check how comfortable you are with him handling your case. Does the lawyer appear to be someone who is trustworthy and would handle your case well? You could also check if he responds well to your queries, returns your phone calls, and gives you timely updates about your case.
These are just some steps in selecting the best Denver criminal attorney for you. Of course, one can only hope that they would be able to live lives that would not have to resort to their services in the future!
How to Hire the best Denver Criminal Attorney
Posted by hawkeye11 in Criminal Attorney, Denver Attorney, criminal defense attorney denver on October 26th, 2009
Have you recently been arrested for a crime in Colorado? If so, you should immediately contact a Denver criminal defense attorney as soon as possible. With the assistance of an attorney, specifically one who deals in criminal defense law, there is a strong chance your case can be dismissed, jail time reduced, probation granted, a monetary fine, or in some instances, no need to even go to court.
Don’t panic. Everyday people find themselves in these situations. The smart thing to do is hire a Denver criminal attorney and then proceed from there. It is in your best interest to seek out representation that understands the inner workings of the law and will be on your side to fight for you. Without legal counsel, you can find yourself in way over your head with little to no chance of successfully fighting the charges against you.
A Denver criminal attorney will defend you no matter what type of legal situation you find yourself in. They will work with you in cases involving minor civil lawsuits up to major felony accusations. Your attorney has one goal in representing you and that is to provide the best possible defense. They are not satisfied unless you are found not guilty or receive minimal jail time.
The strategy your criminal defense attorney draws up is the most important aspect of your defense. It usually involves interviewing any witnesses and obtaining copies of crime scene videos. They will interview and question both witnesses for the prosecution and the defense to ensure they are not lying. A Denver criminal lawyer can also work to negotiate any beneficial deals such as plea arrangements, requests for probation, or even reduced charges.
The job of your criminal lawyer is to create just enough doubt within the minds of the jury and judge so that they cannot without a doubt convict you of the crime. During the trial, your attorney will tell your side of the story, which will hopefully evince feelings of understanding or empathy from the jury. A Denver criminal defense lawyer also interviews experts and other witnesses in order to give the jury some more insight on whether or not you could have committed the crime.
Being arrested for a crime is not the end of the world, but knowing you have a Denver attorney working on your behalf often is the difference between freedom and a lengthy jail sentence. Do yourself a favor and get someone on your side that has experience and a proven track record.
Hiring A Denver Divorce Attorney
Posted by hawkeye11 in Denver Attorney, denver divorce attorney, divorce lawyer, divorce process on September 4th, 2009
Written by: Bill Peters , Denver Attorney
Even an amicable divorce may benefit from use of a Denver Divorce Attorney. You hear about couples who have somehow found a way to divvy up the assets, the kids’ visitations, even the pensions in a way that both sides are happy with. Turn in the paperwork and you are done without the sometimes expensive advice of a divorce lawyer.
It may not be that simple. Judges are not always inclined to sign off on every agreement that passes their courtroom, penned by two inexperienced spouses. Although a couple may agree on paper who gets the house, the car, even the toaster, they may find themselves back at the drawing board with regard to a myriad of other divorce issues.
A Denver Divorce Lawyer would be able to help you with the specifics the average person may not realize need to be part of the agreement for it to be cleared by the divorce judge. For example, when it comes to your children, just a handshake about what c hild support will be is not enough. Exactly what will the visitation schedule be, who will pay for the children’s medical care, and what will be each parties’ responsibility when it comes to ongoing educational costs? A judge would want to know, not just how much maintenance will be, but for how long. What happens if the spouse remarries? The list of specifics goes on and on.
The bad news is, if you try it yourself without a Denver Divorce Lawyer, and the judge sends you back to the drawing board, you will have just one more chance to get it right. After that you will have to start the whole divorce process over again. And that means waiting ANOTHER 90 days for the divorce to be finalized. That may be a long wait for two people hoping to move on as quickly and painlessly as possible. Hiring a Denver Divorce Lawyer may have ensured the transition for the entire family was handled as quickly and efficiently as possible.
DUI-DWI Information
Posted by hawkeye11 in DUI Lawyer Denver, DUI/DWI, Denver Attorney, Denver DUI attorney, Englewood DUI Lawyer, dui lawyer, sobriety test on August 13th, 2009
Written by: Nick Hantge
There are several different laws around DUI/DWI and each state varies on their punishment and regulations. Both a DUI and DWI are terms that refer to operating a motor vehicle while being impaired by alcohol or drugs. The term DUI refers to “Driving Under the Influence” while the term DWI refers to “Driving While Intoxicated”. In the United States, usually a DUI is the less significant charge of the two and relates directly with the intoxication level of the driver. An intoxication level refers to the blood alcohol concentration (BAC) and is usually measured in a percentage. If you are caught driving with a blood alcohol concentration over the states limit you will then be arrested. In all 50 states, .08% is the legal limit.
If you are arrested for a DUI or DWI you should contact a DUI attorney immediately. Usually with the help of a Denver DUI attorney you can get a DWI reduced to a DUI in most instances. If a driver is arrested for either of these instances it is classified as being arrested for drunk driving. Just because you do not feel like you are drunk or impaired does not mean you will not be arrested for DUI/DWI. If you are above the legal limit you can still be arrested or asked to do a sobriety test.
What is a sobriety test?
A sobriety test (standardized field sobriety test) is commonly used by law officers to determine the level of the driver of a motor vehicle’s sobriety. Although the sobriety test can be attested in court because it is bias they often times are the deciding factor if you get arrested or not. This is another area your DUI attorney can help you with in court. If you were given an unfair sobriety field test your lawyer can argue the result from your sobriety test to not be one of the determining factors in your sentence.
Hopefully this article will give you a better idea about what a DUI and DWI are. Remember if you have been drinking you should not drive, regardless your blood alcohol level. If you would like more information about hiring a Denver DUI Attorney or a Denver DUI Lawyer check out a Denver attorney blog or check out their website. A DUI Attorney can help you reduce your sentencing or even get your charges dropped.
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